Chapter 43: Possessed by a Wicked Ghost
The man named Edward showed no interest in me whatsoever. He ignored my existence and continued speaking to Tong Jialin.
“How’s your side progressing? Have you found the target?”
“Oh, I was just heading over there when I bumped into this little brother… The report said no one else was here, so I got a bit curious.”
The man glanced at me, and the moment his cold gaze met mine, my heart went cold! That wasn’t the gaze of a human, nor the gaze of a person… It was the gaze of something looking at an object. I felt like I had seen this gaze somewhere before… Right, it was the same gaze Lianbing had when she was chasing me.
Fortunately, he still didn’t seem interested in me. He just glanced at me and continued speaking to Tong Jialin.
“‘Skinpeeler’ has gone to search the north, and ‘Hangman’ went west. I was the first one in; the east has been searched. I was about to go support other areas… I didn’t expect to run into you on the way. Your efficiency is too slow, ‘Eyegouger.’”
!!!
That was a huge amount of information! Besides these two murderers, there were at least two more?! These murderers appearing here together, all to deal with Xue Qing. Faced with the thin man’s scolding, the blonde woman smiled, showing no signs of anxiety.
“Heh, is it really necessary to make such a big fuss over a little girl? Perhaps one of us has already found the girl and is torturing her to death in their own way?”
Tong Jialin seemed to think such a grand operation against one person was beneath her. She wriggled her waist and smiled, speaking relaxedly.
“So, there’s no need to rush~ We can take our time~”
But Edward clearly didn’t agree, snorting with contempt.
“Hmph, as expected, a big chest with no brain…”
“…What did you mean by that, ‘Bone-Remover’? If you don’t explain yourself, watch out, or this lady will turn against you!”
Called a “big chest with no brain,” Tong Jialin also frowned and looked at Edward with unfriendly eyes, giving him a “you better explain or else” look.
Is this going to be an internal conflict? Fight! Fight! If you fight, I can escape in the chaos!
“That Lord said long ago not to be fooled by the opponent’s appearance. The target this time, the white-haired girl, has slaughtered 28 of our kind consecutively, and each time she left completely unharmed. In terms of close combat, she might even be more formidable than us.”
So she had already killed 28? Regarding Xue Qing’s actions, I just want to say… Well done!
“That’s why we’ve gathered several of our top-tier murderers to deal with her… Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten all this, ‘Eyegouger.’”
“…Tch.”
Unfortunately, Tong Jialin didn’t act rashly. She retracted her aggressive killing intent and turned her head to state her position.
“That Lord has already promised that once we complete this mission, we’ll get a long period of ‘time.’ You wouldn’t want to lose this precious ‘vacation time,’ would you? Even if we are all killers, we occasionally want to relax, don’t you think so?”
Edward didn’t continue to pester her, instead revealing their objective and emphasizing that they shouldn’t lose sight of the greater goal due to minor issues. I frowned as I listened. ‘Time’…? I didn’t fully understand what they meant by ‘time,’ but judging by their attitudes, they cared about it a lot. It was clear they were well-prepared this time.
“Moreover, the target is already prepared for our invasion. The evacuation of everyone on this street is the best proof. The target wants us to be cornered and annihilated here.”
So that’s why the extras had left. They knew a group of murderers would invade and evacuated in advance. Damn it, why today of all days? If I had known, I would have gone to the appointment normally, even if I was late… But the situation had developed beyond being late… It had become a matter of life and death…
“‘Limb-Severer’ is setting up a reverse barrier to temporarily block the entrances and exits, preventing them from flanking us. However, even so, our action time is limited… I hope you can understand.”
“…Hmph, I understand perfectly; you don’t need to keep emphasizing it.”
Edward was calm. He seemed to understand Tong Jialin’s personality well. He first delivered a blow, then brought up their common goal, using a combination of soft and hard tactics, and finally convinced her. This thin man was possibly the mastermind of their plan…
Tong Jialin turned and looked at me again.
“What about this little brother then? She seems to know that little girl. Should we capture him as a hostage?”
Tsk, even with my low presence, I couldn’t get this woman to ignore me. I had silently retreated to the edge, yet she still noticed my movements. She even issued a declaration that sounded like, “You can’t escape anymore.” Take me as a hostage to deal with Xue Qing? Damn it! What a joke… No, let me think in reverse. If I become a hostage, I can feed her false information, so she won’t find Xue Qing. Then, if Xue Qing notices their movements, she might find a way to escape and call for reinforcements…
However, I was overthinking. Edward didn’t even bother to look at me again and said directly.
“No need. He’s already heard too much… Just get rid of him. I’ll go find ‘Skinpeeler.’ After you deal with him, search the south. Remember, our time is limited, don’t overdo it.”
“Hmph, got it, you stingy man!”
After saying that, Edward walked past me with his hands in his pockets. and I bolted! If Tong Jialin was just playing around earlier, now that she was serious about killing me, I had no power to resist! So, no need to think, just run directly! Run with all my might! Escape!
Perhaps my starting speed was a bit too fast. Tong Jialin probably didn’t expect me to escape so decisively. She was stunned for a moment before chasing me. But… her speed was too fast! When I looked back, her speed was less like running and more like ‘floating’! So, why could this woman in a low-cut tight dress and high heels run so fast! After running about a hundred meters, even without looking back, I could feel the woman closing in on me, as the distance was shrinking! After another fifty meters, the woman should be within attacking range!
At this moment, I dove forward without hesitation. Since I wasn’t wearing a shirt, my scratches became even more numerous. But I should have dodged her attack! The next blow, however, I wouldn’t be able to dodge! I rolled away, trying to cause her trouble, but it was merely a temporary reprieve…
“Heh, little brother, you sure can run, can’t you? You seem quite experienced?”
“…I can’t feel happy about this kind of praise at all…”
I was caught after all… Is there no escape…?
“Hoho, for the sake of your effort, big sister will carefully put your eyes into a glass bottle and label them as a collection. How about that? Isn’t it thoughtful?”
Xue Qing was already doing that! Besides, if I had to give up my eyeballs, I’d rather give them to Xue Qing than to a mature woman like you! Tong Jialin half-crouched and pressed my head with both hands. I can’t move! It felt like my head was being fixed by a vise, as if my skull was caving in.
“Come~ Let big sister have a look at your eyes~”
My eyelids were forcibly pried open, and Tong Jialin stared into my eyes.
“Oh ho, seeing them up close, your eyes look even prettier, little brother?”
“Heh, that’s because you haven’t seen prettier eyes. Like that little girl you’re looking for, she has the most beautiful eyes of all!”
There’s… there’s still a chance to turn things around… I can’t be discovered. I need to be more careful, just casually bring up some topics to make her attention relax…
“Oh? Is that so? That’s wonderful news~ Thank you for telling me such good news, little brother~”
Still not enough. I need to get closer, to attack from her blind spot.
“But your eyes aren’t bad either, are they? Hoho, even when speaking to someone who could threaten your life, even when you understand you’re in such a dangerous situation, you remain unfaltering. I bet little brother wouldn’t even bat an eye at a corpse, would you? Such deep eyes… they’re beautiful~”
“Thank you for the compliment, but they’re just dead fish eyes.”
“Well then… these eyes belong to big sister now~”
Tong Jialin’s lips curved into a terrifying smile, her mouth half-open, seeming to split to her ears. The strange carving knife in her hand moved closer to my eyes… Now’s the time! I threw out the short dagger I had hidden in my crotch, stabbing upwards from below! The target was her chin! I wanted to pierce directly through to her head!
And then, at this critical moment, the woman bizarrely turned her head 180 degrees, dodging the stab! How could this be! Is this woman capable of the ‘wolf gaze’ too? Tong Jialin turned back, winked at me, and mocked, “Oh dear, what a shame~ What a shame~ If my body wasn’t so flexible, I might have actually fallen for it~” That’s beyond flexible! Humans can’t turn their heads like that!
“Speaking of which, little brother just flicked away my attack with a knife earlier… Even though you know I’m a murderer, how did you know I was ‘Eyegouger’? And when we first met, you seemed to know my identity…”
Damn, she noticed!
“Ah, could it be that your eyes saw something? Heehee… I want them even more~”
She gazed at me seductively, sat cross-legged on my lap, wrapped her slender legs around my waist, placed her left hand on the back of my neck, and buried my face into her chest as if nursing a baby! Although I felt softness, I wasn’t happy at all! It was like… being possessed by a female ghost!
“Little one who is numb to death, we’ll meet again in the next life~”
She forcibly opened my eyes, and was about to gouge out my eyeballs…
“That won’t do.”
A somewhat familiar voice called out, but I couldn’t remember whose it was… Then a pile of miscellaneous items was thrown onto me. It was beans like adzuki and various small beans, mixed with peach pits. Tong Jialin frowned and retreated from me, seemingly wary of these items.
“I am fortunate to reunite with Lord Juncheng today, so how can I let you specters take Lord Juncheng’s life!”
The one who threw these items had already arrived behind me, supporting me as I was about to fall backward. I turned my head and saw a beautiful face that looked somewhat unfamiliar. Who was this… I couldn’t remember who she was, but I had a feeling I should know her… an inexplicable sense of familiarity from the bottom of my heart… She also turned her head. Our cheeks were very close, almost touching, but I felt no awkwardness or awkwardness. It felt natural, as if this should be the distance between us. Then she smiled, a warm smile that made me feel at ease, as if I had finally found a safe haven… Who is she… Why does she give me this feeling…
“Don’t worry, Lord Juncheng, from now on, I won’t let you get hurt anymore…”
Ah, I remembered… It was…
“Because I’m here.”
Yuhui Bai.
